APA 7th Edition In-Text Citation Rules
Core APA 7th Edition In-Text Citation Rules
The apa 7th edition in text citation rules follow an author-date system to identify sources within your paper. Every citation must include the author's last name and the year of publication. For direct quotes, you must also include a page number (p. 10) or page range (pp. 10-15) to help readers locate the specific passage.
APA 7th Edition Citation Formats
| Author Type | Parenthetical Citation | Narrative Citation |
|---|---|---|
| One Author | (Smith, 2023) | Smith (2023) |
| Two Authors | (Smith & Jones, 2023) | Smith and Jones (2023) |
| Three+ Authors | (Smith et al., 2023) | Smith et al. (2023) |
| Group/Organization | (World Health Organization, 2023) | World Health Organization (2023) |
| Group (with abbreviation) | (National Institute of Mental Health [NIMH], 2023) | National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH, 2023) |
Narrative vs. Parenthetical Styles
APA 7th edition allows for two distinct styles of in-text citations. Use a mix of both to improve the flow of your writing.
- Parenthetical citations: Place the author name and publication year in parentheses at the end of the sentence before the period. Use an ampersand (&) between two authors.
- Narrative citations: Use the author's name as part of the sentence. Place the year in parentheses immediately after the name. Use the word "and" instead of an ampersand.
In-Text Citation Examples
**Direct Quote with Page Number** "The results of the study were inconclusive" (Davis, 2022, p. 45). **Paraphrase without Page Number** Davis (2022) argued that the initial findings did not support the hypothesis. **Multiple Works in One Citation** Several studies have confirmed this effect (Adams, 2018; Brown & Miller, 2021; Smith et al., 2023).
Citation Tip
When citing multiple works inside the same set of parentheses, arrange them alphabetically by the first author's last name and separate the individual sources with semicolons.
Frequently Asked Questions
For any source with three or more authors, use the first author's surname followed by et al. starting from the very first in-text citation. This is a major change from the 6th edition rules.
If a source lacks page numbers, use alternative locators like paragraph numbers (para. 4), section headings, or time stamps for videos. If no locator is available, provide only the author and year.
Parenthetical citations place both the author and year in parentheses at the end of a sentence. Narrative citations incorporate the author's name into the sentence text with the year in parentheses immediately following.
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